The nominations for the 2024 BET Awards were announced on May 16. Leading the nominations was Canadian rapper Drake with seven nods, followed closely by Nicki Minaj with six. J. Cole, Sexyy Red, SZA, Victoria Monét, and Beyoncé each received five nominations, while 21 Savage, Doja Cat, Megan Thee Stallion, Tyla, and Usher each garnered four.
The 2024 BET Awards took place on Sunday night June 30th, celebrated as “culture’s biggest night.” Megan Thee Stallion, fresh off the release of her third studio album, “Megan,” kicked off the show with electrifying performances of “Hiss,” “Boa,” and “Where Them Girls At.” The evening continued with host Taraji P. Henson making a grand entrance with a remix/parody of Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us.”
Victoria Monét, who won the BET Her Award and Video of the Year for “On My Mama,” delivered a stellar performance. The stage also featured electrifying acts by Sexyy Red, Latto, Ice Spice, Heiress Harris and VanVan, Tyla, Gunna, Skillibeng, and GloRilla, who brought Megan Thee Stallion back onstage for their collaboration “Wanna Be.” Representing country music, Shaboozey and Tanner Adell captivated the audience, and Will Smith debuted his new song “You Can Make It.
The Academy Award-winning actor and 4-time Grammy-winning recording artist took the stage at the legendary awards show on Sunday in Los Angeles and delivered a moving performance for “You Can Make It.”
The song was released on Friday and features Haitian-American singer and songwriter Friday, along with the Sunday Service Choir, who also joined Smith onstage at the awards show. The performance received cheers and a standing ovation from the audience.
Tyla took home the awards for Best International Act and Best New Artist, while Usher and SZA won Best Male and Best Female R&B/Pop Artist, respectively. Killer Mike received the Album of the Year award for “Michael.”
Usher was also honored with a lifetime achievement award and was tributed by Childish Gambino, Keke Palmer, Summer Walker, Coco Jones, Marsha Ambrosius, Chlöe, Tinashe, Teyana Taylor, Monét and Latto, who performed some of his biggest hits.
“Getting here has definitely not been easy, but it has been worth it,” Usher began, joking that it’s “too early” for him to receive the honor because he’s “still running and gunning.”
He later opened up about the hardships he overcame in life and his career without his father, with whom he shares a name. Usher reflected, “I was trying to make sense of this name that a man gave me who didn’t stick around because he didn’t love. Or at least that was my perception, because I had to live long enough to understand that you need a forgiving heart to comprehend the true pitfalls and hardships of a Black man in America. My father was a product of that. He made a lot of decisions… a lot of choices… and the one that probably hurt and helped me at the same time was to stay away.”
Usher, a father of four, dubbed this year “the year of the father,” urging, “all the fathers need to stand up for their sons and daughters and be the men they need them to be.”
The show wrapped with Ms. Lauryn Hill, who performed “Lost Ones” and more. Her son YG Marley joined her onstage and sang “Praise Jah in the Moonlight,” and Wyclef Jean came out to perform “Fu-Gee-La.”
One of the most memorable moments of the night came when Teyana “Spike Tey” Taylor, who was not at the ceremony, won video director of the year and gave an acceptance speech via a video call to her mother onstage
By Alizelavie July 1st 2024
